Piezoelectric thin film on glass fiber fabric with structural hierarchy: An approach to high-performance, superflexible, cost-effective, and large-scale nanogenerators

• Published in: Nano energy Vol. 59; pp. 745 - 753
• Main Authors: He, Sibo, Dong, Wen, Guo, Yiping, Guan, Lin, Xiao, Hongyuan, Liu, Hezhou
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.05.2019
• Subjects: Carbon film electrode; Dipping method; Glass fiber fabric; High performance; Piezoelectric nanogenerator; Superflexible; Carbon film electrode; High performance; Piezoelectric nanogenerator; Superflexible; Glass fiber fabric; Dipping method
• ISSN: 2211-2855
• DOI: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2019.03.025

Harvesting mechanical energy using piezoelectric nanogenerator (PENG) to power portable/wearable electronic devices is a promising technology in the age of artificial intelligence. However, high-performance PENGs have often reached with either poor durability, or limited flexibility, or high cost. Here, we select glass fiber fabric (GFF) substrate as a new material platform to enable one-step and large-scale fabrication of high-performance, superflexible PENG based on coherently grown Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 thin films via a simple dipping method. With ∼100 nm thick piezoelectric film coated on the 3.5 cm × 1.5  cm scale fabric, this new material platform was measured to show efficient energy harvesting (∼60 V, ∼500 nA) and multi-mode (bending and pressing) energy harvesting ability with largest bending angle of 180°. An 8 cm × 8  cm scale PENG can simultaneously light up 20 commercial green LEDs successfully. Moreover, the PENG based on the new material platform clearly shows a linear change of current/voltage as a function of strain/load, which is promising to be used as self-powered mechanical sensor as well. This work provides a new perspective to fabricate high performance, superflexible, cost-effective and large-scale nanogenerators and thus may enable rapid application in multi-energy harvesters, sensors, battery-free electronic devices. [Display omitted] •Novel superflexible PENG was fabricated based on glass fiber fabric substrate.•The hierarchical PZT-GFF enables efficient energy harvest and superflexibility.•The designed PENG shows comprehensively high performance for commercial use.•The designed PENG is promising to be used as mechanical sensor as well.